The Nexus of Media and Civic Engagement in India - A Quantitative Study

Abstract: The world’s largest democracy, India, is experiencing dwindling civic engagement. Amongst a plethora of factors that could explain this phenomenon, this study has chosen to explore the role of media. While causality isn’t assured, the profound capacity of the media to influence public opinion and action makes it a vital component in understanding public behaviours with respect to civic engagement. Drawing upon a rich literature review on media and civic engagement and the Agenda-Setting Theory, the study investigates how the public's consumption of media and confidence in media condition civic engagement behaviours. This study employs a quantitative approach, utilising logistic regression analysis to examine data from the World Values Survey 2012. Furthermore, an independent online survey was conducted with N=130 participants and the data was synthesised to derive findings. These two datasets were combined to provide a general study of the role media plays in India’s civic engagement. It was found that rather than fostering civic engagement, an increase in consumption of media corresponded to a decrease in engagement amongst individuals. Subsequently, individuals with low confidence in media were found to be less likely to engage in civic activities. With limited research on the intriguing case of India’s inert civic engagement and its relationship to media, the present study aspires to contribute to the existing academic discourse and broaden the understanding of the intricate relationship between media and civic engagement in India.